Elastic webbing and method of making same



Aug. 8, 1933. Q G. s. VAN VOORHIS I 1,922,020

ELASTIC WEBBING AND METHOD. OF MAKING SAME Filed Jan. 19, 1931 INVENTOR C/ 'zimrroguix Patented Aug. 8, 1933 ELASTIC WEBBING AND METHOD OF MAKING SAME George S. Van Voorhis, Littleton, Mass., assignor to United Elastic Corporation, Easthampton,

Mass., a Corporation of Massachusetts Application January 19, 1931. Serial No. 509,625

' 5 Claims. (cl. 91-68),

This invention relates to elastic sheet materials and to methods of making such materials.

Elastic fabrics of the kind commonly used in I corsets, supporters, elastic stockings, and the like,

are usually made by the weaving process, the rubber strands which give the elasticity to the fabric being woven into the goods while under tension, as is well understood by those skilled in this art. Such fabrics are necessarily relatively coarse and they have a surface which is very objectionable to many people.

The present invention deals particularly with this difiiculty. It aims to improve elastic fabrics with a view to making them more comfortable to wear and giving them more pleasing surface characteristics. concerned with fabrics, it is also contemplated that some features of the invention may be used to advantage in other forms of elastic'sheet ma terials.

The nature of the invention will be readily understood from the following description when read in connection with the accompanying drawing, and the novel features will be particularly pointed out in the appended claims.

In the drawing,

Figure 1 is a. diagrammatic view illustrating certain steps of the method provided by this in vention; and

Fig. 2 is a sectional 'view on a large scale of a piece of. fabric embodying vention.

Briefly stated, the invention involves the coating of any desired portion of the fabric with loose fibre, permanently attached to the fabric, the fibres of the coating preferably being so closely associated that they form a compactcovering for the surface of the entire coated area.

According to the preferred method the'fabric is stretched or tensioned, a suitable adhesive such as rubber latex, rubber cement, or the like, is applied to the portion of the tensioned webbing which is to be coated, the fibre is dusted into this coating,;' and the coating is then allowed to dry, the webbing being maintained under tension until the drying operation has proceeded to such a point that the goodswill not be adversely affected by relieving the tension.

The apparatus used in practicing this method may be of any suitable form. In the particular arrangement shown in Fig. 1 the webbing W is drawn from a supply roll 2 and is run between upper and lower feed rolls 3 and 4, respectively, which gripthe fabric securely, both rolls being driven. The fabric travels over a table or sup- While the invention is especially features of this inport 5 to another pair of rolls 6 and '7 similar to the rolls 3 and 4. The rolls 6 and 7 also grip the fabric and are positively driven so that they feed the fabric, the web finally travelling from the lower roll 7 to the winding roll 8 where it is wound up on a suitable arbor or core 9. ,That section of the fabric between the two pairs of rolls is held constantly in a' stretched or tensioned condition. As the web moves across the table 5 the rubber latex, rubber cement, or other adhesive, is applied to the surface of the webbing, for example, by spraying, as indicated at 10. This adhesive material may be applied in other ways, however, as for example, by rolling it on the fabric or in a spreader. Immediately after the application of the adhesive material the flbreis dusted on to the adhesive coating. The nature of the fibre used will depend upon the characteristics of the particular surface finish desired. Usually, however, a very short fibre will be used, such as that known commercially as fiocks". This fibre is exceedingly short but different lengths are available, and flocks of various materials also can be readily obtained, such as cotton flocks, silk flocks, and the like. It may be blown into 'the adhesive coating on the webbing W througha nozzle 12, Fig. 1, or it may simply be shaken on to the webbing, or it may be applied in any other suitable manner.

After the application of the flocks a suitable interval preferably is allowed for the adhesive coating to dry before the fabric reaches the rolls 6 and 7, and the drying operation may be hastened in any desired manner, as for example, by passing it under a suction ho'od 14 or over a warm plate 15, or the like.

The surplus flock or fibre can be removed at any desired point, either during the process just described or at a subsequent operation. It is also contemplated that the fabric will be subjected to additional finishing operations of a character to be determined by the requirements of individual cases. A

According to the preferred process, as above indicated, the web W is maintained in a stretched and tensioned condition during the application of the adhesive, the dusting operation, and until the .drying has proceeded to the desired point. This'produces a denser association of the fibres, a more complete coating of the surface, and a more compact fibrous coating.

In Fi 2 the rubber strands of fabric are indicated at 16, the strands being interwoven with the warp and filling threads or yarn in the usual manner, and the fibre coating is shown at 17.

of apparel.

It may here be pointed out that the individual fibresof this coating are independent of each other except insofar as they-are all adhesively secured to the fabric by the adhesive. The fibres, however, are not interlocked with each other and have no association independent of their union to the fabric as would be the case if they formed a part of a separate fabric. Consequently, the elasticity of the fabric is not affected in any manner bythe coating.

The fabric so produced has surface characteristics quite unlike those of the ordinary elastic fabrics. The surface is soft and pleasing to the touch as distinguished from the relatively harsh feel of elastic webbing .of the more common kinds. different- This fabric, therefore, is far more suitable for use in many garments and articles While it is less porous than ordinary webbing, this fact is an advantage for some purposes, as in reducing garments. The adhesive coating is also of advantage in reducing the tendency of the fabric to fray or ravel when cut, and providing a more secure union when sewed to another part of a garment. The application of the latex, rubber cement, rubber dispersion, or the like, to the elastic fabric while it is under tension ensures a sufficient penetration of the latex into the fabric to bond the rubber coating to the strands of rubber and the threads of which the elastic fabric is composed. Consequently, when the finished fabric is cut it will "be found that the rubber warps and the thread filling are so bonded together that the fabric will neither ravel, nor will the strands of rubber warp contract and pull the ends back into the body of the fabric away from the cut surface, as is usual in the ordinary forms of woven rubber webbing.

the cold and somewhat tacky surface characteristic of rubber.

The surface appearance also is quite While I have herein disclosed a preferred embodiment ofmy invention, it will be understood that the invention may be embodied in other forms without departing from the spirit or scope thereof.

H ving thus described my'invention, what I desir to claim as new is:

1. That improvement in methods of manufacturing elastic sheet material formed at least partially of rubber, which consists in'stretching said material, and, .while holding the material so stretched and elongated, adhesively securing a coating of short loose fibre to the surface thereof,,to provide a flocked surface.

2. That improvement in methods of manufacturing elastic sheet material formed at least partially of rubber, which consists in coating the surface of the material with an adhesive, applying loose fibre to said adhesive while it is in a sticky condition whereby a coating of said fibre will be united to the material, and holding the material in an elongated condition and under tension while performing said operations and while said adhesive dries.

3. That improvement in methods of manufacturing elastic sheet material formed at least partially of rubber which consists in applying to the surface of said material a coating of a rubbery adhesive, dusting loose fibre into said adhesive while it is in a sticky condition, and holding the material in an elongated condition and stretched while said coating and dusting operations are performed and while the adhesive dries.

4. That improvement in methods of manufacturing elastic webbing of rubber and textile material which consists in stretching the webbing and thereby elongating it, applying and adhesively uniting a coating of flocks to said webbing while it is held so stretched and elongated, thereby to provide a'fiocked surface on the webbing.

5. That improvement in methods'ofmanufacturing elastic webbing of rubber and textile material .which consists in stretching the webbing,

applying adhesive to the surface of the webbing, dusting flocks into said adhesive while it is in a sticky condition, and holding the webbing stretched and elongated during the said applying the adhesive 125 

